The present invention relates to an apparatus for carrying a portable radio, and more particularly to an armband assembly having a first strap means which can be selectively adjusted to retainably encircle a person's arm to be transportively carried thereon and a second strap means fixedly secured to the first strap means for mounting the radio with respect to the first strap means.
The present invention is particularly useful in applications wherein the person who desires continual access to a radio is engaged in manual tasks requiring the use of his hands such as riding a motorcycle or bicycle, carrying articles and the like.
The prior art teaches many different types of portable radio cases having handles or hangstraps to be used by the person carrying the radio. In most applications, the radio must be hand-held at a level higher than normal arms length or else the person is unable to directly hear the sounds generated by the radio and/or the ear plug cord is usually of insufficient length to reach from an arms length carried position to the person's ear.
The prior art also teaches the use of pockets on the person's clothing to carry portable radios, however pockets have the disadvantage of muffling the sound generated directly by the radio since the material of the pocket normally absorbs sound and masks the radios speaker. Additionally, the pocket normally interferes with the ability of the person to adjust the control dials and/or interferes with the ear plug cord passing from the radio to the person's ear. Control adjustments are extremely difficult and the radio must normally be removed from the pocket for such adjustments to be made, often resulting in a hazardous situation such as where the person is engaged in driving a motor vehicle, bicycle or the like.
Several types of radio carriers exist in the prior art which are adapted to be mounted on a bicycle, motorcycle or the like to enable the rider's hands to be free. Most such carriers are mechanically complex and expensive, and often are dangerous if the bicycle or motorcycle is involved in an accident since edges of the carrier assembly may protrude and tend to cause injury. Additionally, most such carriers are mounted on the cross-bar adjacent the seat or on the handlebars of the bicycle or motorcycle, and while the volume of the radio may be sufficient to allow the person to hear the audio sound generated by the radio for bicycle operation, it would seldom if ever be sufficient for use with a motorcycle, minibike or the like.
Additionally, the typical prior art mounting locations are too far from the rider's ear to enable the ear plug cord assembly to comfortably reach from the ear to the radio, and even if it were possible, a dangerous condition could be created if an accident were to occur since the radio would be attached to the motorcycle, bicycle or the like while the ear plug is insertably retained within the person's ear.
Most of the other radio carriers of the prior art which are adapted to be carried by the person desiring continual access to a radio involve clips or means for mounting the radio at a position remote from the wearer's ear which would prohibit use of the ear plug assembly normally accompanying the radio and which would normally prevent the user being able to hear the audio sounds generated by the radio under many different conditions, such as when the user is driving a motorcycle, minibike or the like. Similarly, the other prior art devices often carry the radio in such a position that access to the control dials and/or to the jackplug it is partially or totally obstructed. Many such devices are expensive, difficult to mount or difficult to maintain. Lastly, the radio may not be adequately secured or mounted which may result in its coming loose and falling which can result in injury or damage to the radio.
The present invention eliminates most of the deficiencies of the prior art and provides a selectively adjustable and relatively secure armband assembly for carrying a portable radio in a suitable position on the person's arm leaving his hands free for manual tasks and the like.